Seasonal dynamics of agonistic displays in territorial and non-territorial males of goitered gazelle

Gut Microbiota Plasticity Influences the Adaptability of Wild and Domestic Animals in Co-inhabited Areas

Due to the increased economic demand for livestock, the number of livestock is increasing. Because of human interference, the survival of wild animals is threatened in the face of competition, particularly in co-inhabited grazing pastures. This may lead to differences in the adaptability between wild and domestic animals, as well as nutritional deficiencies in wild animals. The gut microbiota is closely associated with host health, nutrition, and adaptability. However, the gut microbiota diversity and functions in domestic and wild animals in co-inhabited areas are unclear. To reveal the adaptability of wild and domestic animals in co-inhabited areas based on gut microbiota, we assessed the gut microbiota diversity. This study was based on the V3–V4 region of 16S rRNA and gut microbiota functions according to the metagenome analysis of fresh fecal samples in wild goitered gazelles (Gazella subgutturosa) and domestic sheep (Ovis aries) in the Qaidam Basin. The wild and domestic species showed significant differences in alpha- and beta-diversities. Specifically, the alpha-diversity was lower in goitered gazelles. We speculated that the nutritional and habitat status of the goitered gazelles were worse. The gut microbiota functions in the gazelles were enriched in metabolism and cellular processes based on the KEGG database. In summary, we reasoned that gut microbiota can improve the adaptability of goitered gazelles through energy maintenance by the functions of gut microbiota in the face of nutritional deficiencies. These findings highlight the importance of gut microbiota diversity to improve the adaptability of goitered gazelles, laying a foundation for the conservation of wild goitered gazelles. In addition, we further provide management suggestions for domestic sheep in co-inhabited grazing pastures.

Female-female aggression in goitered gazelles: the desire for isolation

In contrast to males, which compete with other males for access to mates, females compete with each other for forage-rich sites, birthing grounds, comfortable resting places, and access to sources of water and salt licking locations. This behavior has been observed in many species. However, many agonistic interactions between females occur where resources are not immediately at stake, and the reasons for their rivalry are often unclear. Therefore in this paper, I want to analyze the main causes of female-female aggression in the yearly cycle of goitered gazelles. I found that adult females had conflicts moistly with sub-adult females and less with other adult females; and these behaviors were observed mainly in May, with less in June, and only a few cases displayed during the rest of the year. The months of May-June had the most abundant and highest quality forage of the year, when competition for resources would seem to be least expected. Struggles for resting places occurred throughout the entire year, with only some bias for May that did not represent a primary level of aggression. In reality, the high rate of female-female aggressive interactions was related to the protection of birthing grounds, where mothers isolated themselves to give births, establish a strong selective mother-young bonds, keep their hiding fawns separated from alien offspring (having initial problems with distant visual recognition), and protect them against disturbance from all other females, which can undermine a fawn's hidden status and make it more vulnerable to predation.

Vigilance, staring and escape running in antipredator behavior of goitered gazelle

Predation is a very powerful force that shapes many ungulate traits. It is widely known that increasing vigilance intensity is costly and leads to a decline of forage intake. Consequently, ungulates gather into larger groups to reduce an individual vigilance burden by using the "many eyes" effect and to enhance their survival through the "safety in numbers" effect. Vigilance rate and related aggregation changes are two of the most discussed antipredator responses of ungulates to predation risk, but less considered factors also have a significant impact. To enhance our knowledge on these impact factors, I investigated the antipredator responses (vigilance, staring, and escape running) of goitered gazelles. I found that: a) adult females demonstrated vigilance, staring and escape running significantly more often than adult males, sub-adults and fawns; b) adult gazelles (females and males), having more experience in responding to threats, were more vigilant than young individuals (sub-adults and fawns), having likely more involvement in finding food; c) during the birthing and hiding periods, mothers displayed higher rates of vigilance than in other seasons, while staring and escape running were observed most often at the end of the hiding period, when fawns altering their hiding strategy to following one, started to walk a lot in the absence of mothers, as well; and d) goitered gazelles changed their vigilance rate in response to predation risks before changing group size. The events of the yearly biological cycle (birthing/rearing young for females; rutting for males) also had significant impacts on the antipredator responses (vigilance rate and aggregation) in adult gazelles.

Biological Clocks and Rhythms of Anger and Aggression

The body’s internal timekeeping system is an under-recognized but highly influential force in behaviors and emotions including anger and reactive aggression. Predictable cycles or rhythms in behavior are expressed on several different time scales such as circadian (circa diem, or approximately 24-h rhythms) and infradian (exceeding 24 h, such as monthly or seasonal cycles). The circadian timekeeping system underlying rhythmic behaviors in mammals is constituted by a network of clocks distributed throughout the brain and body, the activity of which synchronizes to a central pacemaker, or master clock. Our daily experiences with the external environment including social activity strongly influence the exact timing of this network. In the present review, we examine evidence from a number of species and propose that anger and reactive aggression interact in multiple ways with circadian clocks. Specifically, we argue that: (i) there are predictable rhythms in the expression of aggression and anger; (ii) disruptions of the normal functioning of the circadian system increase the likelihood of aggressive behaviors; and (iii) conversely, chronic expression of anger can disrupt normal rhythmic cycles of physiological activities and create conditions for pathologies such as cardiovascular disease to develop. Taken together, these observations suggest that a comprehensive perspective on anger and reactive aggression must incorporate an understanding of the role of the circadian timing system in these intense affective states.